On October 30, 2015 at 19:06, Mac Burks (39) said...
The best way to keep criminals from getting guns is to cut off their biggest supplier...law abiding citizens who are careless or law abiding citizens who aren't really law abiding citizens.
We need better rules for who gets guns. Half blind Aunt Betty shouldn't have a gun. 6 year old Cousin Joe still eats his boogers so no gun for him. 16 should be the youngest legally allowed to own and use a firearm. Written and range test required to obtain a permit. Firearms must be registered and secured. Anyone who "loses" or has a firearm "stolen" should be penalized and held accountable. First strike no gun card for 1 year. Second strike you lose your gun card completely and have to wait 3 years to get another. 3rd strike you lose your ability to ever own a firearm again because clearly you are too stupid to own one. Caught with a gun after that? Prison for 10 years.
Oh and when grandpa dies who gets his 357 piece hand gun collection? Will it be Uncle James, the stand up citizen who will immediately register them and add them to his secure collection that is stored in various vaults and pass coded requiring a retina scan? Or will methy Uncle Steve who lives in a station wagon that doesn't have an engine in it behind his moms house get them...and sell them to any and everyone he comes in contact with?
Making "law abiding" citizens act responsibly is exactly how you keep weapons from the hands of criminals. It also makes it more clear who is and isn't the criminal. Just like traffic lights. Putting that red light up there doesn't stop someone from running the red light but it makes it so we can identify who the law breaker is and penalize them for their criminal behavior. If the attitude is that "gun laws wont stop criminals" then why do we bother making rape illegal?
You already must be 18 to own a firearm. And I have serious problems with the idea of restricting the age of use to anyone under 16. I know plenty of people that grew up with guns. Firearms were part of their lives, and they learned proper use and safety early on. to them, guns are normal. Not anything to be afraid of or see as something taboo.
And I also have a problem with a gun owner being punished if someone breaks into their house. I hate to drop the cliche, but an unloaded gun is useless. If I want to use a weapon for home defense, it needs to be loaded and accessible. Not locked up with the shells locked up somewhere else. If my guns are in my house, and my house is locked, that should not be negligence on my part if someone breaks down my door and makes off with my firearm. Do you want to put the same restriction on someone if their medicine cabinet is robbed by a burglar?
